Subaru emphasizes safety, capability with Forester ad campaign

Subaru of America has launched its national ad campaign for the redesigned 2019 Forester and much like the vehicle itself, the commercials have a familiar look and feel.

The three 60-second TV spots focus on what have become Subaru marketing hallmarks: safety, off-road capability, the outdoors and dogs.

Subaru once again worked with partner Carmichael Lynch for the commercials.

The redesigned Forester, which went on sale in October, is expected to be a key driver in the automaker's stated goal of 700,000 U.S. sales in 2019, which would be a 3 percent increase over 2018's results.

The compact crossover has been the brand's best U.S. seller for the past five months.

In "For All You Love," a family is shown unloading a Forester at a campsite. As they unpack their gear, the family dog, which appears to be in its senior years, walks down a path made of items and memories from the family's earlier life events, including birthday parties, the birth of a child, home improvements and moving, among others. As the dog walks down the path, the couple, child and dog are shown as their younger selves. By the end of the clip, the dog is a puppy.

The "Call of the Road" spot begins with a young couple deciding what to do first with their recently purchased Forester, which still has the temporary license plate on it. They decide on taking a road trip along with their two dogs and are shown going off-road, stopping at a diner and hiking. At the end of the ad, the woman asks, "So what should we do second?"

In "A Parent's Imagination," the somber video shows three parents staring intently, their minds imagining vehicle crashes that were a result of distracted driving by their teenagers. But the fourth teenager is shown driving a Forester in Touring trim, which includes DriverFocus, a driver monitoring system that uses facial recognition software to identify signs of distraction.

When the driver takes her eyes off the road by looking at her phone in a cupholder, the system reminds her to pay attention and she quickly brakes at an intersection, avoiding a collision with a semi-truck. The clip ends with the teenager safely arriving at home.

Subaru noted that the Forester will get additional exposure outside of the commercials during the campaign. This includes airtime on the CBS' sitcom "Life in Pieces" and also a collaboration with actors from the TBS show "Miracle Workers."